Survival
thumb|The Survival tree. The third and most unusual hunter talent tree, as of patch 1.7. Overview "A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." — Robert Heinlein Designed with the worst possible scenario archetype in mind, the Survival tree is one that, in both PvE and PvP, emphasises a more defensive overall strategy, as well as being unique in providing a balance between ranged and melee attacks. From the beginning, talents that increase damage via melee attacks contrast with the ranged talents of like nature in the Marksmanship tree, in particular. However, near the middle and further downward, the unorthodox tree moves in a direction all its own, breeding one of the deadliest (if rarely used) character builds in the game. Unlike Marksmanship or Beast Mastery hunters, a Survival hunter is actually designed to handle enemies that get into his melee range. Although the recent patch 2.1.0 revitalised the tree, (by granting Expose Weakness a potential 100% proc rate, among other things) and re-ignited interest in it, the dedicated Survival spec Hunter remains the single most rare class/specialisation combination in the game, representing less than 5% of World of Warcraft's overall player population, according to polls of the Armoury. This should not necessarily be interpreted as a condemnation of the tree's viability, but rather a reflection of the degree of difficulty inherent in learning to effectively wield the degree of utility and power that the tree offers. = Strengths = * Augments survivability through increased health, damage mitigation, and resistance to snares. * Emphasizes balance between ranged and melee ability, by including talents that enhance both. * Enhances the Hunter's trainable traps. * Allows greater mana efficiency (Thrill of the Hunt, Resourcefulness) than the other two trees. * Emphasises burst damage via both melee combat, (Savage Strikes) and ranged. All of the tree's bonuses to critical strikes apply to both ranged and melee damage. * Potentially one of the most powerful character builds in the game, due to the focus on combining both ranged and melee tactics, rather than relying exclusively on either. *It scales better with gear due to Lightning Reflexes, Expose Weakness, and the Attack Power bonus of Survival Instincts all being percentages. *With decent equipment, during the late to end game it is possible for a Survival Hunter to attain marginally higher sustained damage than a native of either of the other two Hunter trees, due to the fact that with the Lethal and Mortal Shots talents from the Marksmanship tree, Killer Instincts and Master Tactician from Survival, and high base Agility, a maximum crit chance of above 50% is possible. The crit bonuses from Killer Instincts and Master Tactician also apply to both melee and ranged combat. = Weaknesses = * Somewhat more oriented towards high level or close to end-game use. * More dependent on quality equipment than the other two trees. A Survival Hunter needs the ability to identify and select appropriate pieces of equipment, and to prioritise the appropriate stats. Being wealthy helps, too. * Considerably more difficult to use effectively than either of the other two trees. * Makes levelling slower compared to the other two trees if used in the early game. * The useful talents are mostly farther along in the tree, so starting out as survival at a low level you will have a terrible damage output, and you won't feel much empowered. * The farther you get in survival, the more damage you do, so you'll end up out-agroing your pet. This is made up for by the defensive bonuses of Deflection, Survivalist, Survival Instincts and Deterrence, but Elite mobs become harder to solo than the other two specs where the pet actually can hold agro. For a detailed synopsis of Survival talents, including percentages and additional information, see Survival section of Hunter talents. Category:Hunters Category:Hunter Talents